Cleaning device for player pianos



April 6 1926.

AF. F. KRAMER, JR

.CLEANING DEVICE FOR PLAYER PIANos Filed Jan. 22 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet l Patented Apr. 6, 1926;

4UNITED STATES FRED F. KRAMER, JR., OF ALLENTOWN, PENNSYLVANIA.

CLEANING DEVICE FR PLAYER FIANOS.

Application filed January 22, 1924. Serial No. 687,824.

To all whom z5 may concern:

Be it known that I, FRED F. KRAMER, Jr., a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Allentown, in the county of Lehigh and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improve ments in Cleaning Devices forv Player Pianos; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, concise, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to improvements in. automatic player or reproducing pianos, having for an object to provide a novel form of'device capable of ready attachment to a piano of the above characteig'whereby dirt, dust, or other foreign matter may be positively7 removed from the tracker bar and tubes of the piano without, in any way, interfering with the normal `usage of any part of the same.

lt is likewise an object of the invention to provide a cleaning device of the character mentioned which with its installation may be controlled at the will of an operator, and when not in use, will permit of proper functioning of the piano equipped therewith.

Other objects of the invention will be in part, obvious, and in part pointed out hereinafter. y

In order that the invention and its mode of operation may be readily understood by persons skilled Vin the art, I havein the accompanying illustrative drawings, and in the detailed y following description based thereon, set out one ,possible embodiment of the same.

In these drawings: y i

Figure `1 is a semi-diagrammatic view showing the attachment of the improved cleaning device, .in elevation, to the spool box` and wind chestAof an automatic piano.;

Figure 2 is an enlarged fragmentary detail in vertical longitudinal section through the lvalve means employed; y

Figure 3 is a horizontal longitudinal section through such valve means; and,l 'A Figure 4 is an enlarged fragmentary detail in longitudinal section through the novel head of the ,cleaning device. Y ,Having more particular referenceto the drawings, in connection with which `like characters of reference will designate corresponding parts throughout, the invention is adapted to be attached to that form of automatic piano player utilizing a wind chest or other suitable device generally in-v dicated herein b y the numeral l, the piano being equipped with `the usual top action 2 and a spool box 3 adapted to receive spools 4; therein wherebyto permit the winding of the usual perforated music sheet from one roll to another, as is common in these devices. A tracker barb, is` arranged within the spool box or Vhousing y3, extending longitudinally of the same and being arranged between t-he spoolsffi, said tracker bar having ports or openings generally indicated, by the numeral. 5 formed in spaced relation throughout its length, whiley a plurality of tubes 7 are extended upwardly into engagementwith these openings 6 and have their remaining ends communicating' with the top action 2. In this connection, it of course will be understood that the perforated playing sheet or music sheet wound from one of the spools 4 toanother within the spool box or housing 3 is adapted to'pass over the curved outer face of the tracker bar 5, the perforations thereon, at times, aligning with the various perforations formed in said tracker-bar whereby operation of the top action 2 will be effected andthe piano will be caused to accurately reproduce the-music represented upon the sheets by such perforations. Conduits generally indicated by the numeral 8 serve to establish communication between the wind ychest l and the top action 2; a valve casing, preferably rectangular' in shape,.indicated by the lnumeral 9, being in"- terposedin a section of one ofthese conduits 8, asv shown, in the Figure l. Ports are formed in those portionsy of the valve casing engaged by the adjacent portions of Vthe conduit 8 in order that uninterrupted communication as between the wind chest guide rails l0 are arranged within the valve casingl 9, `being secured to adjacent portions ofthe ,bottom thereof, as clearly shown in the Figure 3, through the medium of screws or other suitable fastening devices 11, and these guide rails receive thereunder a substantially rectangularly shapedA plate valve 12, which if desired, mayhave the lower side thereof lined with a suitable material,

such as indicated by the numeral 13, where` by that port formed in the bottom of the valve S may `bc positively closed with'movenient of the valve to a position over the saine as indicated in the Figure An operating rod 1e is connected to one extremity of the plate valve 12 and is slidably received in openings formed in one end wall of the valve casing 9 and carries a knob or handle piece 15 thereupon for an obvious purpose.

Virith the view of utilizing the suction of the partial vacuum created within the wind chest 1, by the usual air exhausting device of the piano, for the suction of my improved cleaningV device, 1 provide a pipe 16 one end portion of which is connected to and in communication with the wind chest 1, and the other end portion ofl which is passed through a suitable opening in one side wall of the housing or spool box 3 and through an adjacent bracket 17 secured within the spool box. This pipe 16 or that portion of the same which is within and in proximity' to the spool box is formed ofV iiexible material in order that the free end thereof may be moved to various positions, when the cleaning devi-ce is being used.

The free end portion of the pipe 16 within the spool box 3 carries a nozzle comprising a hollow or cylindrical body portion 18 and a removable sleeve 22 which fits snugly around the body portion 18 in slidable engagement therewith. rhe body portion 18 kis connectedthrough a reduced end portion 19 to the pipe 16 within the spool `box 3. The sleeve 22 is provided with an end wall having an air inlet opening 24C therein normally closing the otherwise Aopen end of the hollow body portionk 18, save for the inlet opening 2a. The end wall 23 is made concave as shown to conform to and fit closely against the convex outer surface of the tracker bar when the nozzle is placed against the same.

The air passage through the hollow body 18 of the nozzle is interrupted by a dirt or dust screen or strainer 2O kwhich is held in fixed position within the body 18 by frictional contact therewith against a shoulder formed therein, in spaced relation to the wall 18, as shown.

It will now be understood that when the end wall 23 of the nozzle is placed against the forward surface of the tracker bar 5 and moved along the same the inlet opening 2&1 of the nozzle will be brought into registry with'the ports or openings 6 in the ytracker bar, that during this operation the suction of the wind chest 1 will draw the dirt and dust from within the openings 6 and from within the air tubes of the piano leading therefrom and into the hollow body portion of the nozzle, thereby effecting the desired cleaning operation.

Secured by means of screws 27 to the side wall of the spool box 3 opposite to the side wall thereof through which the pipe 16 extends is a sleeve bracket 26 which is closed at one end and open at the other and which forms a receptacle adapted to receive and snugly lit around the sleeve 22 of the. nozzle Vand support thenozzle in anoutof-the-way position when the cleaning' device is not in use. rlhe sleeve. ibracket 26 not only supports the nozzle but it also serves as a closure for the air inlet opening 24 thereof andv thereby prevents air from entering the wind chest 1 through the nozzle and its pipe 16 when the device is not in use.

llhen the cleaning device is not in operation, the plate valve 12 is moved to its open position through the medium of the handle and knob 14 and 15 respectively, that is, the valve 12 is removed from the port formed in the bottom of the valve casing S). Thus, air will bel permitted to pass through the conduit 8 directly from the. wind chest 1 to the top action 2, permitting the piano to be eifectually operated. rllhe cleaning device, under these conditions, obviously, will in no way whatsoever interfere with the proper functioning of the piano or the playing or reproducing mechanism, and as will be well understood by persons skilled in the art, may be used with equal seccess upon the many forms of automatic pianos, now prevalent, such as those commonly identified in the art as player pianos, electric pianos, reproducing pianos, et cetera.

To operate the cleaning device, the valve 12 heretofore referred to is moved to its closed position, as shown in the Figures 2 and 3, thereby interrupting conmiunication through the conduit 8 between the wind chest 1 and the top action 2, hence, cutting off air to the latter. At this time, a suction will be set up within the conduit 16 and in consequence, the nozzle of the cleaning device may be removed from the supporting receptacle or sleeve bracket 26 and placed against and moved along the tracker bar 5, as previously explained, to eflectually draw -all dirt, dust, and other loose foreign matter from vthe perforations in the trackerbar and from the tracker bar tubes, thereby positively cleaning the same and rendering operation of the piano more positive as well as more effectual. f y

It is preferable that with operation of the cleaning device the operator shall movethe so-called tempo lever of the automatic piano to its zero point, whereupon the motive means of the wind chest is started in operation. lVhen the tracker bar and its tubes have been properly cleaned, the plate valve 12 may be again moved to its open position, as aforesaid, whereupon communication will be again established as between the wind chest 1 and the top action 2, per- Initting the piano to function in the desired manner.

The strainer or filter 20, obviously, serves to prevent the passage of dirt through the pipe 16 to the wind chest l and other air passages of the automatic piano and when it is desired to remove dirt from the cleaning device, all that is necessary is to remove the sleeve 22 from the body 18 of the nozzle, whereupon the dirt .may be readily discharged from the nozzle body 18 and the sleeve 22 then replaced for further operation or usage. Y

Manifestly, the construction shown is capable of considerable modification, and such modification, as is within the scope of my claims, I consider` within the spirit of my invention.

I claim:

l. In an automatic player piano, the combination with the wind chest, of a cleaning device for the air passages leading through and from the tracker bar, comprising a flexible pipe having one end in communication with the wind chest, a nozzle on the other end of the pipe and having an air inlet opening adapted to be placed in communication with the air passages leading through and from the tracker bar of the piano, and a sleeve bracket supported by a part of the piano casing and adapted to receive and support said nozzle, said bracket closing the inlet opening of the nozzle when the nozzle is supported therein.

2. In an automatic player piano, the co1nbination lwith the spool box and the wind chest, of' a cleaning device for the air passages leading through and from the tracker bar, comprising a pipe in communication with the wind chest and extending through and supported at one sidewall of the spool box and having a flexible portion within the spool box, a nozzle carried by the free end of the flexible portion of the pipe within the spool box and having an air inlet opening adapted to be placed in communication with the air passages leading through and from the tracker bar of the piano, and a sleeve bracket supported within the spool box by the side wall thereof opposite to the side wall through which said pipe extends and adapted to receive and support saidnozzle, said bracket closing the inlet'opening of the nozzle when the nozzle is supported therein.

3. In an automatic player piano, the combination with the spool box and the wind chest, of a cleaning device for the air passages leading through and from `the tracker bar, comprising a pipe in communication with the wind chest and extending through and supported at one sidewall of the spool box vand having a lexible portion within the spool box, a nozzle carried by the free end of the flexible portion of the pipe within the spool box and having an air inlet opening adapted to be placed in communication with the air passages leading through and from the tracker bar, and means for detachably supporting the nozzle within the spool box, said means being secured to the side wall of the spool box opposite to the side wall thereof through which said pipe extends.

4l. In an automatic player piano, the com-y bination with the spool box and the wind chest, of a cleaning device lfor the air passages leading through and from .the tracker bar, comprising a pipe in communication lwith the wind chest and extending through In witness whereof I have hereunto set.

my hand. l

' FRED F. KRAMER, JR. 

